guaco

American  

[gwah-koh] / ˈgwɑ koʊ /

noun

• guacos
  plural

1. a climbing composite plant, Mikania guaco, of tropical America.

2. its leaves, or a substance obtained from them, sometimes used locally as an antidote for snakebites.

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guaco British  

/ ˈɡwɑːkəʊ /

noun

1. any of several tropical American plants whose leaves are used as an antidote to snakebite, esp the climbers Mikania guaco, family Asteraceae (composites), or Aristolochia maxima ( A. serpentina ), family Aristolochiaceae

2. the leaves of any of these plants

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• guacos
  plural

Etymology

Origin of guaco

First recorded in 1815–25; from Latin American Spanish

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

guaco

He has only bound on leaves from a shrub called guaco; but you needn't try to remember the name, for they are efficacious only while green.

From The Search for the Silver City A Tale of Adventure in Yucatan by James Otis

The liana called vejeco de guaco,* which M. Mutis has rendered so celebrated, and which is the most certain remedy for the bite of venomous serpents, is yet unknown in these countries.

From Personal Narrative of Travels to the Equinoctial Regions of America, During the Year 1799-1804 — Volume 2 by Alexander von Humboldt

M. guaco Humboldt mentions, under the name of Vijuco del Guaco, as being highly esteemed in South America as a valuable antidote against the bite of serpents.

From The Romance of Natural History, Second Series by Philip Henry Gosse

"When I have bound more guaco leaves on this man's wound," was the answer, and now the boys noticed that he had brought a fresh supply of the wonderful shrub.

From The Search for the Silver City A Tale of Adventure in Yucatan by James Otis

But the polygala is quite inodorous, while the guaco gives forth a strong aromatic smell, resembling valerian.

From The Quadroon Adventures in the Far West by Mayne Reid